Numbers 5 Study Notes
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5:1-2 These people were not banished, but sent outside the sacred area so the holy place would not be defiled. The unclean were quarantined on the outer perimeter of the camp. Leviticus 13-14 describes the process of purification by which people could be restored to the camp of the holy. Skin diseases ranged from abscesses or eczema to perhaps Hansen’s disease (leprosy), though some scholars reject the inclusion of Hansen’s disease in the OT restrictions. Bodily discharges refer to those emitted by male and female sexual organs (cp. Lv 15). Contact with a dead animal rendered a person impure for a day, but pollution by contact with a human corpse made him unclean for a week.
5:3-4 As with most OT laws, both male or female were on equal status regarding ritual purity, except for those things which were unique to one gender.
5:5-10 When a man or woman commits any sin against another addressed purity in interpersonal relationships as part of the Hebrew ’asham (“guilt offering”) legislation of Lv 6:1-7. Damage to property, fraud, or false statements affected the well-being of the community of faith and had to be dealt with forthrightly. Human relationship and a restitution of value were essential for maintaining harmony and holiness in the community.
qin’ah
| Hebrew pronunciation | [kin AH] |
| CSB translation | jealousy |
| Uses in Numbers | 9 |
| Uses in the OT | 43 |
| Focus passage | Numbers 5:14-15,18,25,29-30 |
Qin’ah represents jealousy (23x, Ezk 5:13), zeal (14x, Is 9:7), or envy (2x, Is 11:13). Two forms of qin’ah occur in Ezk 8:3. One instance connotes that which is offensive; the second means jealousy. Qin’ah refers to jealous rage (Ezk 23:25), anger (Ps 119:139), and jealousy (Sg 8:6). Seven times (Nm 25:11) it occurs with related qinne’ (34x), be envious or jealous (Gn 26:14; 37:11). People wrongly envy others (Pr 23:17). They are also zealous (1Kg 19:14) or jealous (Nm 11:29) for God. The infinitive indicates zeal (2Sm 21:2). Causative verbs denote provoke jealousy or to jealous anger (Dt 32:16). Qanna’ (6x, Ex 20:5) and qano’ (2x, Jos 24:19) both describe God as jealous. Jealousy, central to his nature (Ex 34:14), was aroused particularly by Israel’s worship of false gods (Dt 32:16). He resembled a justly jealous husband (Nm 5:14-15).
5:11-14 Probably no case study in pentateuchal law has so many conditional clauses. If any man’s wife was apprehended in the act of adultery, her act was punishable by death along with the adulterous male partner (Lv 20:10). The ritual outlined here put the matter in the hands of God (who sees and knows all) when adultery was suspected but not proven by human witnesses. The woman would not be stoned if the community followed this legislation. Throughout the book of Numbers special attention is given to matters related to women, including women’s property rights (Nm 27:1-11; 36:1-12) and women’s vows (30:3-16; including female Nazirites in 6:2).
5:15-17 The woman suspected of adultery would be brought before the priest at the entrance of the tabernacle. The woman was to stand before the Lord, who would act as her judge.
5:18 To let down her hair was a sign of mourning or disgrace (Lv 10:6; 13:45; 21:10).
5:19-22 The extended oath of imprecation took place at the entrance to the sanctuary before God and the priest. The mixture of holy water and dust from the tabernacle floor (v. 16) became either a purification tonic if the woman was innocent or a curse that left her barren for life.
5:23-28 In the solemn ceremony, the woman drank the potion and the results were left to God. Perhaps there was only a slight possibility that the punishment would happen. A jealous husband, having no more than a hunch of evidence against his wife, subjected her to a test in which the prospects of punishment were very limited. God is the only infallible judge.
5:29-31 These verses summarize the jealousy ritual.